First Truth by Dawn Cook

When the magical abilities of a young woman named Alissa awaken, she must travel to the Hold where she can be trained. Along the way, she meets a young man named Strell and the two are drawn into intrigue and adventure as Alissa begins to discover her latent magical abilities.

My thoughts:

I wasn’t expecting a lot from this book, probably because the last fantasy novel I read wasn’t exactly my favorite. The author did a really nice job of creating interesting and believable characters, as well as telling a cohesive story rich in detail. Oh, how I appreciate a fantasy story that makes sense right now!

Alissa and Strell are a bit petty in some scenes, but then again that could be chalked up to young people emotions. I was plenty petty and ridiculous in my emotions as a young adult at times. The magic in this story is interesting — more of an internal force than simply saying the right incantations. I look forward to seeing how the magical abilities are developed, since we only get small glimpses of what is possible.

For those of you who enjoy seeing a strong female character take the lead in a fantasy story, you’ll probably get a kick out of this one. I have the next two books on standby on my bookshelf, and I can’t wait to get started on them!

I recommend First Truth to fans of fantasy who like to see an empowered female protagonist.